Mark Manley
Raleigh Fan
I made the mistake of going on FB marketplace the other day and an advert for a Dawes 3 speed caught my eye, having something of a liking for English 3 speeds I clicked on it and what appeared to be a Dutch bicycle came up reduced to £25 must go by Sunday. I messaged the seller and arranged to view it having noticed the drum brakes and Reynolds sticker which was just about visible in the photos, it turned out to be a 7 speed having a Sachs hub gear and a 501 frame, money changed hands and I cycled back to the station on it.
Initial impressions only having ridden it about 3 miles are that it is huge compared to my other roadsters which all have a similar upright riding position, it will take some more use before I decide whether or not to keep it but it is a bit of a handful. It is a Brighton model and the only place I can find anything about it is in a Dutch brochure from 1993 and given the sticker on the rear mudguard it was made for that market and has been repatriated at some point.
I plan to strip it down and polish the paintwork which is not bad but rather dull and give it a full service and going over, only then after some more miles will I decide on its ultimate fate, added to the collection or at least try to sell it, although I am not sure if the curiosity factor of it being a genuine Dutch model would make it any more desirable than any of the other hundreds of cheaper bikes that are for sale at the moment.
Initial impressions only having ridden it about 3 miles are that it is huge compared to my other roadsters which all have a similar upright riding position, it will take some more use before I decide whether or not to keep it but it is a bit of a handful. It is a Brighton model and the only place I can find anything about it is in a Dutch brochure from 1993 and given the sticker on the rear mudguard it was made for that market and has been repatriated at some point.
I plan to strip it down and polish the paintwork which is not bad but rather dull and give it a full service and going over, only then after some more miles will I decide on its ultimate fate, added to the collection or at least try to sell it, although I am not sure if the curiosity factor of it being a genuine Dutch model would make it any more desirable than any of the other hundreds of cheaper bikes that are for sale at the moment.
seven speed in your area would be very usable.
